Property in South-East Asia Set to Boom

According to Jones Lang LaSalle, the property markets in Southeast Asia could begin to boom. The firm believes there are several factors which will influence the markets, including growing affluence and urbanisation in these countries, which will result in an increased demand for housing as well as commercial property and infrastructure.

In addition this should lead to increased tourism both from within the region and outside, and it's expected there will be considerable demand for property in developing countries such as Laos and Myanmar. here should also be an increased demand for hospitals and clinics, as more these affluent societies begin to focus on improving health.

Education is another sector expected to see increased demand, as there will be an additional need for schools and colleges as well as the associated housing and infrastructure.

However Jones Lang Lasalle has pointed out changes will need to be made to land ownership laws in order to encourage investment. This means there will be a need for increased transparency and professionalism within the property sector. At the moment there are a number of differences between the countries regarding foreign property ownership, and these need to be managed more efficiently in order for opportunities to be maximised.

Economies such as Laos and Cambodia have only recently opened up, and although there are numerous business opportunities investors need to feel confident about conducting transactions in such countries. If these difficulties can be ironed out then the property market can develop more quickly, and more money can be invested into countries in South-East Asia.

Interest Rate Cut Boosts Australian Property Sales

Australia recently saw its first interest rate cut in two and a half years, and this has had a positive effect on the sales of new homes which have increased by 6.8% from October to November. Sales of detached properties increased by 9.8% which was mainly due to more properties being sold in New South Wales and Victoria.

However the picture isn't quite so rosy for multiunit sales which fell by 17%. Experts have played down the increase saying it is only to be expected as two months earlier sales of detached homes fell to an 11 year low which was partly due to speculation about a rate cut, and although this latest news is welcome sales volumes are currently at least 20% below levels required for a healthy market.

They point out that a sustained government stimulus is needed to bring about a strong recovery within the homebuilding market. In November sales of detached homes increased in four out of the five main and states and were up by 22.8% in New South Wales, by 11.6% in Victoria, by 5.7% in Western Australia and by 4.7% in Queensland.

In South Australia sales fell by 11.3%. It is however a great time for anyone wishing to build a new home as the building market is very competitive with a good availability of skilled trades combined with lower interest rates creating favourable conditions. Some economists are even predicting further interest rate falls as early as next month in an effort to boost retail sales and lift consumer sentiment.

Bright Signs for Overseas Property in 2010: But What About the Second Bite?

There is no doubt about it: as of the end of 2009 and for at least the first quarter of this year, the fear over the depth the financial crisis could plumb has subsided and anyone who has not been put in financial straits during the last 2/3 years is making plans and taking actions as if things are completely back to normal.

Some people are shouting about a second bite, including me in some areas, but I just wanted to explore the possibility that people going back to normal as they are could feed economies sufficiently enough to avoid the dreaded second bite as the stimulus rugs are pulled out from below us.

Okay, firstly there was a report of massive traffic increases to the prominent UK portals: traffic up 25% to Rightmove Overseas, 32% to the Move Channel and 38% Property-Abroad.com, all in the first seven days of the year. Of course there is the possibility that it was as much to do with the freak weather giving people more time to browse, but one thing about the freak weather is that is will have also increased the inclination to browse for a home in the sun.

Now, we have 133% increase in the sales of Miami condos. You will hear a lot of over 100% rises in the first quarter of this year, but this one holds weight because it gave figures. Condo Vultures research showed that 1655 condos were sold in Miami in the "latter part" of the year, compared to only 711 in the first 6 months.

HolidayLettings.co.uk, Rightmove's sister site has now reported an increase in traffic of 55% as over 1 million people visit the site in the first ten days of the year.

Yes, again this can be put down to the winter blues as Britain experienced freak weather, but I was here during the freak weather, and so was all my family and none of them were on holiday lettings booking trips or looking into buying property overseas on Rightmove.

The fear over the second bite comes from the fact that, at some point, probably within the next 4 months central banks, including the bank of England will start to pull back from their stimulus. This will lead to rising interest rates and falling liquidity. It will also mean more job losses as the government starts paying for the stimulus.

However, everyone knows this is going to happen. The people who work in the government departments likely to be affected by the cutbacks know that they work in the departments likely to be affected by the cutbacks. Therefore it is fairly safe to assume that those currently doing the browsing are able to spend in relative security.

Of course people will get caught out, but no more than normal. And of course there will be people browsing for the sake of browsing, but also, no more than normal.

I think that this current surge of activity is genuinely a very bright sign for the overseas property and tourism industries in 2010.

Spanish Property Still Topping the Charts with Overseas Buyers

Spain has topped the charts yet again in terms of popularity with overseas property buyers according to a recent chart compiled by major overseas property publication Home Overseas.

Spain took 1st place from its close rival Portugal, which had apparently been most popular in the Home Overseas chart for several months.

The Homes Overseas chart is very different to that of portal Property Abroad.com who had Spain in first place for several months until it was overtaken by America in June, which stayed in top-spot in July as well. America is 7th most popular with Homes Overseas readers, up one place on the previous month. Thailand property is 9th most popular with Homes Overseas and has never appeared on the Property Abroad.com chart.

Activity does seem to be increasing in the Spanish market slowly but surely, as the combination of the price drops and strengthening Sterling vs Euro exchange rate brings people back in to the market in the hope of getting their dream holiday home for a bargain price.

You know things are improving when you read an article titled Is it time to dive back into the overseas property market in the Times, or rather when the answer within the article is a resounding yes.

The article even contained details of a 100% profit made on a Spanish property investment, it read:

"Someone who has followed that advice [to buy resort property in prime coastal locations where the Spanish also buy] is Alexander MacDonald, of Glasgow. The 41-year-old bought a one-bedroom apartment in a Spanish-dominated block in Playa de la Arena, Tenerife, for £40,000 in 2002. He sold recently for £80,000 and is looking to buy something bigger in the area while prices are down."

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